Commission Presentations

March 2026 Presentations

Bruce Rinne, Information Officer, spoke at Lantern Realty & Development on March 4^th.

Len Elder, Director of Education and Licensing, and Kizzy Crawford Heath, Assistant Director of Education and Licensing, spoke at Durham Regional Association of REALTORS® on March 12^th.

Bruce Rinne, Information Officer, spoke at The Sears Group on March 12^th.

Miriam Baer, Executive Director, spoke at Compass Real Estate on March 24^th.

Sarah Dixon, Associate Legal Counsel II, spoke at Howard Hanna Allen Tate on March 24^th.

Lyndi James, Auditor/Investigator, spoke at Topsail Island Association of REALTORS® on March 24^th.

April 2026 Presentations

*These presentations are subject to change due to the availability of Commission members and/or staff.*

Minerva Mims, Fair Housing and Community Relations Officer, will speak at Raleigh Regional Association of REALTORS® on April 2^nd.

Beau Minnick, Consumer Protection Officer, will speak at Century 21 The Realty Group on April 7^th.

Miriam Baer, Executive Director, will speak at Greensboro REALTORS® Association on April 7^th.

Minerva Mims, Fair Housing and Community Relations Officer, will speak at Gardner-Webb University on April 8^th.

Dee Bigelow, Information Officer, will speak at Asheville Property Managers on April 13^th.

Fair Housing

The Fair Housing Project of Legal Aid of North Carolina is the State’s full‑service, statewide fair housing organization. The Project provides legal assistance to victims of housing discrimination, conducts fair housing testing, and offers education to tenants, landlords, property managers, and real estate professionals.

In partnership with the North Carolina Housing Finance Agency, a public agency dedicated to expanding access to safe and affordable housing, the Fair Housing Project will offer a series of free fair housing trainings this spring. These sessions will provide a foundational overview of fair housing law, with each one focusing on key topics such as reasonable accommodations and modifications, service and support animals, tenant screening, and fair housing considerations during the eviction process.

The trainings are free, open to the public, and offered both virtually and in person at locations throughout the state. Registration is required, and participants may sign up for one or more sessions based on their interests and location.

Please note that brokers who attend these trainings will NOT receive continuing education credit.

For additional information or to register, visit the Fair Housing Project of Legal Aid’s website.

Upcoming 2026 In-Person Basic Fair Housing Trainings — Fair Housing Project

Upcoming 2026 Virtual Fair Housing Trainings — Fair Housing Project

Tech Corner

Technology has created new opportunities for fraudsters to impersonate property owners and intercept real estate transaction funds. Across the country, brokers are encountering increasingly sophisticated identity theft schemes targeting vacant land, rental properties, and out-of-state owners. In many cases, communication appears legitimate, and the documents look authentic.

A common scenario begins when a broker receives an email from someone claiming to be the property owner and wanting to sell quickly. The fake seller often indicates they are currently overseas, traveling for work, or otherwise unable to meet in person. They may also insist on communicating only by email or text and request that the property be listed quickly and priced aggressively to encourage a quick sale.

In the article, Preventing Seller Impersonation Fraud in Residential and Commercial Transactions, the Commission provided steps brokers can implement to verify a remote seller’s identity. The steps are as follows:

• require a government-issued photo ID;
• require a live, face-to-face, video chat with the seller using your own conferencing software, not theirs;
• visit the property in person and confirm the seller knows property details;
• cross-check the seller’s identity using tools like FOREWARN;
• independently locate and contact the owner and talk to neighbors;
• ask for ownership documents that only the true owner will have;
• be wary of quick cash sale;
• research recent sales and withdrawals of the same property;
• educate and protect all parties; and
• coordinate early with the closing attorney.   

Technology will continue to evolve, and so will the methods used by scammers attempting to exploit it. The fake seller scam is becoming more sophisticated and increasingly targets both residential and commercial transactions. Therefore, brokers who combine good technology practices with careful identity verification can significantly reduce the risk of becoming involved in a fraudulent transaction.

Don’t Wait! Take Your CE Today!

Link: https://youtu.be/_bwTjlgxFds

Script: Have you taken your CE? Brokers must complete their 8-hours of CE by June 10, 2026. Although you have until June 10, completing your CE early is a wise decision. Brokers who complete their CE early have the most current information to remain complainant with License Law and Commission rules. Also, postponing the course until the last minute, may expose you to unnecessary risk like missing your CE deadline.

Register for your CE today!

Check Your CE Record

Did you know that you can check your continuing education records on www.ncrec.gov prior to calling the North Carolina Real Estate Commission?

Link: https://youtu.be/FI8o3AApfL4

What should I do with my license in retirement?

Thinking about retiring from your real estate business? As with so many things in real estate, there are options depending on HOW retired you want to be. Find the path below that mirrors your desire:

I am tired and want an indefinite break from real estate:

• But I would like to still give and receive referrals:
  • You must maintain an active license by taking CE and paying the annual renewal fee
    • IF you are a PB, you must remain affiliated with a BIC even if only a referral agent; and, you will need to complete your post-licensing education on time.
    • IF you are a FULL broker, you can remove your affiliation with a brokerage/BIC and move your license to your home address
      • You cannot solicit referrals through advertising unless you designate as a BIC
      • You can place referrals that “fall in your lap”
• But I might want to “get back in the game” later:
  • You may put your license on inactive status; NO brokerage activity is allowed
    • You must still renew your license every year
    • Completion of CE is optional while on inactive status
      • Any CE deficiency must be made up before activation (Rule 58A .1703)
      • If you stay up-to-date with annual CE, activation requires only a form submission

I am DONE with real estate FOREVER!

• IF you are absolutely sure that you will never want your license back:
  • You may submit a license cancellation form to cancel your license
    • This is PERMANENT; the license cannot be reinstated    
    • If you change your mind and want your license back, you would be required to pass the Broker Prelicensing Course and the license examination
• If you are not 100% sure, consider the “indefinite break” options listed above.

Fair Housing

Real estate professionals are often the first and primary point of contact for buyers, sellers, and renters in the real estate marketplace. Access to reliable fair housing resources is essential for brokers in order to help them navigate complex regulations with confidence and consistency. Quality resources, including federal guidance, state-level updates, or industry training tools, help brokers avoid regulatory violations, respond appropriately to client questions, and maintain ethical practices. Ultimately, staying connected to these resources strengthens a broker’s professionalism, protects their business, and reinforces trust within the communities they serve. Brokers would benefit from having the resources below in their toolkit.

North Carolina Real Estate Commission

• Provides fair housing guidance for brokers and consumers

• Offers continuing education courses with fair housing components

• Offers education and outreach for brokers and consumers

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)

• Provides federal fair housing regulations, complaint procedures, and  compliance guidelines

• Offers training materials and policy updates

• A foundational source for understanding national standards

NC REALTORS®

• Offers fair housing training and simulations for members

• Offers a fair housing video and articles for non-members

Fair Housing Assistance Program (FHAP) Offices

HUD-certified state and local organizations that investigate complaints, offer education, and outreach programs

• North Carolina Human Relations Commission

• Charlotte-Mecklenburg Community Relations

• City of Durham Human Relations Division

Fair Housing Organizations and Nonprofits

These organizations offer education, outreach, advocacy, and research

• National Fair Housing Alliance

• The Fair Housing Project of Legal Aid of North Carolina  

 

Current Stats: Monthly Licensee Count as of February 1, 2026

Reminder to Licensees Regarding Contact Information

Every broker in their Licensee Login must provide the Commission with a private email. If you are a broker, your private email is the way you will receive all notices and communications from the Commission. The Commission sends out reminder notices, renewal notices and other communications using the private email provided by the broker.

Brokers also have the option to provide a public email address. The public email address is what the Commission makes available to the public, including people outside of the Commission who have requested broker contact information.

Brokers provide the following information in their portal and are responsible for making certain this information is current and correct:

• Private email address
• Optional public email address
• Residence mailing address
• Residence physical address
• Private phone number

Brokers do not need to fill out a form, submit an email or call the Commission to change any of the above items. The Commission will not alter these fields from what the broker has entered. If the information is outdated or incorrect, the broker simply needs to log in to their portal and change it.

Brokers should not use the Firm/Office Address Change Request form (REC 2.21) to change their individual address, even if changing affiliations. This form is designed for use only by a BIC when a firm or office location address changes.

Please take a moment to log in to your broker portal today and check the accuracy of your contact information. Doing so will insure that you don’t miss important notifications from the Commission.

Acquiring title “subject to” a seller’s mortgage can lead to FRAUD

When you read or hear the term, “subject to” in connection with real estate, it typically means to acquire title to a property subject to the current owner’s existing mortgage. Typical scenario: A buyer contracts to buy a seller’s property subject to the seller’s existing mortgage and the buyer promises to make payments on the seller’s existing mortgage until it is paid in full. [Note: This is NOT a formal loan assumption which would require the lender’s approval of the buyer and the transfer of title.] The seller often signs a quitclaim deed to transfer the title to the buyer, but doesn’t inform the seller’s lender. Why? To avoid triggering the due-on-sale clause which would require the seller to pay off the mortgage. The concealment of the sales transaction from the lender is where the fraud typically toccurs.

After transferring the title to the buyer, the seller no longer owns the property, but the seller’s mortgage still exists. In the event of a default of the existing mortgage, the lender would potentially have no collateral to sell to pay off the debt. As the new owner of the property, the buyer might try to (1) borrow money using the house as collateral, (2) sell the property to someone willing to pay more for the property, or (3) lease the property. While the buyer might pay off the seller’s mortgage after reselling the property, there is no guarantee that this will occur. Often,, the buyer only makes mortgage payments when rent is collected and rarely makes repairs, leading to a delinquent mortgage in the seller’s name and a  property that falls into disrepair.

Transferring a property subject to the seller’s existing mortgage without disclosure to the lender is generally a form of LOAN FRAUD and no broker should participate in a “subject to” transaction as a broker, a buyer or a seller without legal advice from a qualified real property attorney. If a broker cannot prove with documentation that they informed the seller and the mortgage company about the “subject to” transaction and the transfer of title to the property, then there are possible violations of N.C.G.S. § 93A-6(a)(1), (8) and (10) which authorize the Commission to pursue disciplinary action against a licensee involved in this type of transaction.